Houston PBS – Channel 8 will show the second part of the two-hour documentary on Tuesday, August 9, 2011, at 9:00 p.m.
After the initial days of celebration following the opening of the Wall, the fate of the two Germanys hung in the balance. Would a new chapter of instability doom Gorbachev’s era of reform and deepen the divide between east and west?
The spiraling events prompted an unparalleled diplomatic effort from one-time enemies. Interviews with George H.W. Bush, Mikhail Gorbachev and Helmut Kohl offer unusual and intimate details about the inner workings of government at the highest levels and how relationships among world leaders guided the completely unanticipated series of events that resulted in a new Europe in less than a year changing the course of modern history.
Protesters outside the Nikolai church, Leipzig
Other major players from all sides provide insightful and often surprising perspectives, including then-Secretary of State James Baker, National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft, Soviet Affairs Advisor Condoleezza Rice, and West German National Security Advisor Horst Teltschik.
March 1990 brought a spectacle East Germans hadn’t seen in nearly 60 years — an open election. Helmut Kohl’s conservative party pulled off an upset, indicating the strong desire of East Germans to unify the country as soon as possible. Germany was formally united in October, less than one year from when the wall fell.
Hear first-hand testimony from East German leaders who oversaw the abrupt and unexpected end of their forty-year experiment in socialism, as well as the stories of ordinary Germans suddenly free to live their lives in a modern capitalist economy.
After the loss of East Germany, Gorbachev was forced out of office and the Soviet Union crumbled. One of the final phone calls Gorbachev made from the Kremlin was to his good friend, George Bush. The last head of the Soviet Union was calling to say good-bye to the President of the United States. The Cold War was indeed over.
The Wall — A World Divided and After The Wall — A World United were written and directed by Eric Stange. For more information, visit http://www.houstonpbs.org/thewall/.
Eric Stange, executive producer and founder of Spy Pond Productions, is an award-winning independent documentary film producer, director and writer who specializes in history and science subjects. His work has been broadcast on PBS, The Discovery Channel and the BBC. Before becoming a filmmaker, he wrote about art and culture for The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Atlantic Monthly and other publications. Stange has been the recipient of a Harvard University Charles Warren Fellowship in American History. He’s on the board of Common-Place, a website devoted to early American history, and writes a column about media and history for American Heritage magazine.
Houston PBS – Channel 8 – serves to empower, engage and enrich the lives of the people of Southeast Texas. HoustonPBS provides content and services that advance civic engagement, create an environment for learning and encourage the exchange of diverse perspectives. Millions of people tune in each month to watch quality programs about culture, arts, science, news and national and world affairs as well as award-winning children’s programming.